Jo is an experienced corporate lawyer specialising in private equity investments, mergers and acquisitions, corporate structuring and governance, and secured lending. She acts for a range of professional services clients including investment and asset managers, private lending institutions, insolvency practitioners, solicitors, accountants and insurance brokers, as well as advising clients in manufacturing, technology, hospitality, retail and leisure, supporting both established businesses and early start-ups.

Jo takes great care to understand her clients’ businesses and their legal, commercial and regulatory requirements, frequently working alongside accountants and tax advisors to optimise group and transaction structures. Her motivation rests in providing exceptional client care with technical skill and attention to detail, while maintaining a high degree of commerciality.

Jo trained with an international firm, qualifying into their corporate finance team in 2001 where she spent a number of years acting for clients specialising in M&A, AIM and LSE regulated transactions.  She was one of the original founders of Hewlett Swanson in January 2012 and now heads the non-contentious and financial aspects of the business.

Recent examples of Jo and the corporate team’s client work include:

• Cross-border sale for over £6m of the entire issued share capital of an international sports event management company, including earn-out mechanics, consideration shares, IP licensing, property underletting and the exercise of EMI options.
• Sale of the entire issued share capital of an insurance brokerage company to a national consolidator for £7m for consideration in both cash and hurdle shares.
• Acting for management in the structuring and negotiation of a 50/50 real estate brokerage and asset management joint venture with a market leading investment partner, including a detailed JV shareholders’ agreement and articles, secured lending, shared services agreement and director’s service agreements for the management team.
• Purchase of an LLP with assets including a garden centre for £10m including underlying debt structuring of the acquisition vehicle involving private and institutional secured lending.
• Structuring an IFA business, including negotiation of the retirement of the founding member from an existing LLP and transfer of an agreed client book to the new venture.
• Corporate structuring of a pharmacovigilance company through the introduction of a Topco to facilitate the exit of a founder shareholder in consideration for shares, cash and convertible loan notes.
• Purchase for c.£3m of a self-storage company operating from 3 sites, including complex secured lending from a national lending institution.

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